Synopsis

“Let our families and others who are important to us, be with us to care for us and love us” (Charter on The Rights of Children and Young People in Healthcare Service in Australia, 2017).

Patient and family-centred care has been widely accepted as an ideal way to care for children in hospitals. This was not always the case. Drawing on the RCH Archives collection, interviews with current and past patients, families and nursing staff, we will explore how family-centred care has evolved over time, to the present era where the child and family are at the forefront of our care.

Speakers

Associate Professor Sharon Kinney is a Nurse Consultant in the Nursing Research Department at the RCH and has an academic appointment in the Department of Nursing at The University of Melbourne. Through these dual roles she has had a long association with RCH. She has previously worked for many years in paediatric critical care and held both clinical and educational appointments within the area.

Bianca Devsam has a dual appointment as a Clinical Nurse Consultant in Nursing Research and Clinical Nurse Specialist on the Butterfly Ward (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). This combination of mentoring nurses to complete clinical research and working at the bedside providing direct patient care, has allowed for a unique understanding of the balance between advances in healthcare and keeping patients and families at the centre.